あるが上に花の咲きそふ橘は皐月の玉に貫かむためなり
| aru ga ue ni hana no sakisou tachibana wa satsuki no tama ni nukamu tame nari |
Up above Blossom blooms close by: Oranges – Jewels of summer For the threading! |
Fujiwara no Nakazane (1064-1122)
藤原仲実
Tag Archives: blossom
KKS XX: 1081
MYS V: 841
MYS V: 838
MYS V: 824
SZS I: 28
Yoshitada-shū 535
Love I: 24
Left (Win).
忘れずよほのぼの人を三嶋江のたそがれなりし蘆のまよひに
| wasurezu yo honobono hito o mishimae no tasogare narishi ashi no mayoi ni |
Never will I forget you Who I glimpsed faintly In the dusk of Mishima Bay A single reed Causes confusion. |
647
Right.
花の色に移る心は山櫻霞のまより思ひそめてき
| hana no iro ni utsuru kokoro wa yamazakura kasumi no ma yori omoisometeki |
A blossom’s hue Has caught my heart; A mountain cherry Through the parted mists Has set me on the path of love. |
648
The Gentlemen of the Right state: saying simply ‘dusk’ (tasogare) when it should be ‘the hour of dusk’ (tasogare toki) sounds somewhat strange. The Gentlemen of the Left state: the Right’s poem is composed to recall the Kokinshū’s ‘A mountain cherry through the drifting mists’ (yamazakura kasumi no ma yori), but is inferior to the original.
Shunzei’s judgement: in regard to the Left’s poem, it is certainly the case that, even without the ‘hour’, ‘in the dusk’ is a standard expression. The Right’s poem sounds old-fashioned. The Left, though, does not sound unpleasant, even though its mentioning of ‘never will I forget’ (wasurezu yo) recollects ‘a tiled kiln’. It should win.
Winter I: 20
Left.
誰も見よこれはみぞれの空ならん散來る花は雨や交りし
| tare mo miyo kore wa mizore no sora naran chirikuru hana wa ame ya majirishi |
Behold, one and all! This is a sleet-filled Sky, indeed! Flowers falling, Mixed with rain? |
519
Right (Win).
風渡る花のあたりの春雨は冬の空にもありける物を
| kaze wataru hana no atari no harusame wa fuyu no sora ni mo arikeru mono o |
The breeze blows Around the blossom In spring showers; The winter skies, too, Have such things… |
520
The Right wonder about the appropriateness of ‘mixed’ (majirishi). The Left complain that the Right’s poem ‘does not contain an expression from the topic [dai no ji]’ and wonder about the appropriateness of this in a poetry competition.
Shunzei’s judgement: ‘This is a sleet-filled sky, indeed!’ (kore wa mizore no sora naran) is charming, but the latter section of the poem, saying that blossoms fall during a shower is quite pedestrian [tsune no koto ni aran]. I also wonder about the appropriateness of ‘mixed with rain?’ (ame ya majirishi) as a choice of poetic diction [uta kotoba]. Having ‘Around the blossom in spring showers’ (hana no atari no harusame wa), and then ‘The winter skies, too, have such things…’ (fuyu no sora ni mo arikeru mono o) is extremely charming. Even without the explicit reference to the topic, one can certainly glimpse the sleet. The Right should win.
Winter I: 15
Left.
色いろの花ゆへ野邊に立出でし眺めまでこそ霜枯にけれ
| iroiro no hana yue nobe ni tachi’ideshi nagame made koso shimogarenikere |
Many were the shades Of blossom in the fields I went to see; Even that view, now, is completely Burned by frost. |
509
Right (Win).
冬更くる野邊を見るにも思出る心のうちは花ぞ色いろ
| fuyu fukuru nobe o miru ni mo omoi’izuru kokoro no uchi wa hana zo iroiro |
In the depths of winter Gazing o’er the fields What I recall Within my heart Are the blossoms’ many hues. |
The Provisional Master of the Empress’ Household Office.
510
The Right wonder about the appropriateness of having a ‘view’ (nagame) of frost burn. The Left suggest that ‘depths of winter’ sounds a poor expression [kikiyokarazu] [because ‘depths of night’ was a more standard usage].
Shunzei’s judgement: Both poems refer to the many colours (iroiro) of the blooms of autumn, and this is certainly not lacking in taste [yūnarazaru ni wa arazu]. When gazing over the frost-burned winter fields, saying ‘even that view’ (nagame made) is not a fault as such [toga nakarubekeredomo], but I feel it would be better to avoid encompassing everything within a ‘view’. On ‘depths of winter’ (fuyu fukuru), we have the same old opinion that it ‘sounds poor’ but, I ask you, what sounds poor about it? What is to be criticised in ‘depths of winter’? As a piece of diction, ‘depths’ (fukuru) can be used about anything. Thus, the Right must win.